Even after achieving high search engine rankings, there’s no guarantee people will click your links. Of course, you don’t want your efforts to go to waste. That’s why product schema is so powerful: It enables search engines to show links with extra information. On average, these rich snippets are much more appealing to searchers and can drive additional clicks.
Implementing structured data can be a bit tricky, though, so I’ve prepared this handy step-by-step guide, which includes product schema markup examples, to demonstrate how it all comes together.
What Is Product Schema?
Product schema is a form of schema markup — information formatted specifically for computers. It enables search engines to find details about your products, such as:
- Pricing.
- Reviews and ratings.
- Special offers.
- Awards.
Depending on the type of product, there are even more properties you can make use of to easily share information with search crawlers.
For example, you can list clothing sizes, materials, and colors or electronics’ operating systems and storage capacity details.
When Google links to products in search results, it may include some of this data. The result is rich snippets that stand out with product pictures and valuable information at a glance. Just like how a featured snippet improves the visibility of informational content, these rich product links attract much more attention.
Why Product Schema Is Critical for Ecommerce Sites
After glancing at a few product schema markup examples, it’s easy to understand why it’s one of the most important schema type for ecommerce sites. Rich snippets are simply more noticeable and compelling. They instantly provide information shoppers want, like price, reviews, and even shipping info. If you don’t use them, you risk losing search visibility to competitors.
Product schema gives you:
- Higher visibility and ROI. Rich snippets generate higher click-through rates (CTRs) because they’re more visible. However, the additional information also helps filter out unqualified leads. As a result, your traffic converts more readily, boosting returns.
- Better search rankings. One aspect of rankability is the ease with which search engines understand your content. Product schema helps Google evaluate your content and determine its relevance, bringing you long-term ranking gains, which means more customers over time.
- Improved user experience. Customers appreciate upfront information when making purchases. Schema even lets you include shipping information and discounts. This results in higher user experience (UX) satisfaction and reduced cart abandonment, as customers know what they’re getting and don’t need to waste time confirming shipping details or prices.
Even if your competitors use product schema, implementing it doesn’t merely equalize the playing field. Many businesses don’t fully benefit from schema because they don’t optimize it. Often, they don’t update their data frequently enough or only include basic details, so tactful use of markup still grants you a considerable advantage.
How To Create Product Schema
Now that you understand the benefits structured data brings to your products, you’re probably wondering how to create product schema. Here’s a step-by-step rundown.
1. Choose Your Schema Format
You can implement schema data in multiple ways, including:
- JSON-LD
- Microdata
- RDFa
Google recommends using JSON-LD (JavaScript Object Notation for Linked Data), which requires a script in the head of your product pages’ HTML. This method keeps all the structured data in one place, making it easy to edit later.
Microdata and RDFa allow you to insert product schema details into in-line HTML tags across a page. RDFa is more flexible and complicated than microdata.
So which is best? In most cases, stick with JSON-LD because you don’t have to go back through the HTML with a fine-tooth comb every time you want to adjust it. Tools and plugins typically use this implementation too, making the transition easier if you eventually employ a plugin to automate your markup.
2. Identify Product Attributes
You can reference many product attributes using schema. However, essential details usually include the following:
- @context: Always “https://schema.org/”
- @type: Always “Product” in this situation
- name: Product name
- image: Product image URL
- description: Detailed product description
- sku: Stock Keeping Unit identifier
- brand: Product brand name
- offers: Price, condition, and availability information
- aggregateRating: Average rating based on multiple reviews
- review: Specific reviews
At a minimum, you need to include the name attribute and one or more properties from the following to earn a rich snippet on Google:
- aggregateRating
- review
- offers
Take a look at the Product Schema documentation for specific attributes you can use to leverage schema more effectively than competitors.
3. Insert Data Into Your HTML
To enter schema into a page, start by assigning a script with the type “application/ld+json” in the document’s head section. The next lines of JavaScript identify the script as product schema and provide all the information you’d like to assign as markup. This is how it will look:
{
"@context": "https://schema.org/",
"@type": "Product",
"name": "Example Product",
"image": "https://example.com/photos/1x1/photo.jpg",
"description": "Example product description.",
"sku": "12345",
}Follow this with the closing script tag. If you want to add ratings, reviews, and offers, they go in the same script, but it’s easier to see how to enter these details by looking at the full examples ahead.
4. Validate the Schema
Validating schema just means checking to ensure it works correctly and contains no errors. The best way is to use Google Search Console’s structured data checker, either through the URL inspect tool or the Rich Results Test. This is because Search Console will specifically tell you whether the markup is correct and whether it has everything necessary for a rich snippet in Google. Search Console also routinely flags any structured data issues it finds on existing pages.
Alternatively, check URLs or code on schema.org or use another third-party validator. Many site audit tools also validate schema periodically.
Product Schema Markup Examples
Schema markup assigns properties that contain information associated with specific products. Take a look at the following product schema markup examples, and you’ll see how you might use custom properties to your advantage with the additional property parameter. Our first example also demonstrates how to implement the rating and offers markups.
Laptop Example:
<script type="application/ld+json">
{
"@context": "https://schema.org/",
"@type": "Product",
"name": "XYZ Gaming Laptop",
"image": "https://example.com/photos/laptop.jpg",
"description": "A high-performance laptop for gaming and professional
use, with 32GB of RAM and a 2TB SSD.",
"sku": "LAP12345",
"brand": {
"@type": "Brand",
"name": "TechBrand"
},
"model": "XYZ123",
"releaseDate": "2024-01-15",
"additionalProperty": [
{
"@type": "PropertyValue",
"name": "Operating System",
"value": "Windows 11"
},
{
"@type": "PropertyValue",
"name": "Processor",
"value": "Intel Core i9"
},
{
"@type": "PropertyValue",
"name": "Memory",
"value": "32GB RAM"
},
{
"@type": "PropertyValue",
"name": "Storage Capacity",
"value": "2TB SSD" },
{
"@type": "PropertyValue",
"name": "Battery Life",
"value": "10 hours"
}
],
"offers": {
"@type": "Offer",
"url": "https://example.com/product/laptop",
"priceCurrency": "USD", "price": "2499.99",
"priceValidUntil": "2024-12-31",
"itemCondition": "https://schema.org/NewCondition",
"availability": "https://schema.org/InStock"
},
"aggregateRating": {
"@type": "AggregateRating",
"ratingValue": "4.7",
"reviewCount": "87"
}
}
</script>Men’s T-Shirt Example:
<script type="application/ld+json">
{
"@context": "https://schema.org/",
"@type": "Product",
"name": "Men's Casual T-Shirt",
"image": "https://example.com/photos/tshirt.jpg",
"description": "A comfortable t-shirt for men, made from 100% cotton.",
"sku": "TSHIRT12345",
"brand": {
"@type": "Brand",
"name": "FashionBrand"
},
"size": ["Small", "Medium", "Large", "XL"],
"color": ["Red", "Blue", "Black"],
"material": "100% Cotton",
"pattern": "Solid",
"additionalProperty": [
{
"@type": "PropertyValue",
"name": "Gender",
"value": "Male"
},
{
"@type": "PropertyValue",
"name": "Age Group",
"value": "Adult"
},
{
"@type": "PropertyValue",
"name": "Fit",
"value": "Regular Fit"
},
{
"@type": "PropertyValue",
"name": "Care Instructions",
"value": "Machine Washable"
},
{
"@type": "PropertyValue",
"name": "Occasion",
"value": "Casual"
}
]
}
</script>Board Game Example:
<script type="application/ld+json">
{
"@context": "https://schema.org/",
"@type": "Product",
"name": "Example Board Game",
"image": "https://example.com/photos/boardgame.jpg",
"description": "An exciting board game for 2-6 players.",
"sku": "BG12345",
"brand": {
"@type": "Brand",
"name": "GameBrand"
},
"material": "Cardboard, Plastic",
"additionalProperty": [
{
"@type": "PropertyValue",
"name": "Number of Players",
"value": "2-6"
}
]
}
</script>Useful Product Schema Tools
Entering schema markup manually is ok for small inventories. However, doing things at scale can take a lot of time, so it’s best to use tools to automate the process. Here are some excellent options:
- Google’s Structured Data Markup Helper: The Structured Data Markup Helper displays chosen URLs, allowing you to tag product details such as name, description, or price and generate schema markup from it, speeding up implementation.
- Schema.dev’s Structured Data Tool Set: Schema.dev offers a full suite of tools that let you generate schema, test it, and deploy it to your website automatically.
- Schema WordPress Plugin: The Schema WordPress Plugin automates markup by pulling metadata from the page. While this is powerful, you can take things a step further with the WooCommerce add-on, which draws upon product information from your WooCommerce database. When you adjust pricing and other details in the database, you can then update the schema on many pages at once.
Overall, plugins offer the best solution for ecommerce sites with large inventories. Markup plugins often also handle several schema types in addition to products. This way, you’re covered if you plan to target position zero SERP features through a blog on the same site. Structured data also improves overall site accessibility.
Stand Out in the SERPs With a Trusted Partner
Shine a spotlight on your products with structured data and rich snippets. While schema helps your business maximize its returns, implementing it takes time, regardless of the size of your site. Need a hand? Contact us for a free SEO consultation, and our ecommerce SEO agency will handle the planning and execution, freeing you up to focus on your customers and vision.
